Doctor Who: TARDIS Code Redux - The Dream Eaters (Rewritten Version)
by Anna Brelin
Summary: The 12th Doctor and his new companion Elsie Kulbet try to solve the mystery of the dream eaters, who have trapped an entire colony of people inside a dream world made up of the collective imagination of the colonists. What do the dream eaters want? What is their plan and why are they feeding as well as collecting the dreams and imaginations of the colonists?
1. Chapter 1

**Doctor Who: TARDIS Code Redux – The Dream Eaters  
**

 **Written by Anna Brelin**

 **Prologue** :

The 12th Doctor: "Dreams. What are they and what are their purpose? According to science, dreams are stories and images that our mind creates while we sleep. We all dream, even if we don't remember most of it the next day. They can be quite vivid, entertaining, disturbing and sometimes downright random and bizarre. But what if there was a purpose to these dreams? What are your dreams trying to tell you and what if some of these dreams are a warning, a warning of something ominous and sinister, something unseen lurking, just waiting to be let in?

Perhaps it's already been let in and perhaps it has already done what it came to do. Invading silently through your dreams, watching, waiting. Now imagine if that was an alien creature, an alien creature that feeds on your dreams and exploits them, manipulating your reality, making it appear that you are awake when in reality, you are asleep. Your mind is highjacked, made to believe that everything you see and sense around you is real. But the truth is far more darker and much more sinister than you could ever imagine..."

 **Chapter 1** :

All that Elsie could do was run.

Run a fast as she could away from the alien creature that was chasing her. She could clearly see that she was in the park near her flat, running down a long gray brick pathway towards a long, dark tunnel. She could see herself running towards the tunnel, with the alien creature close to her heels. Only she could see the creature and hear the menacing clicking sounds it made as it scurried after her. It seems that the creature was almost on top of her until...

Elsie gasped, waking up with a start as she heard a knock at her front door. It took her a moment to realize that it was just a dream and that she was lying on her sofa in the living room of her flat, covered up with a blanket. Elsie quickly got up and answered the door. It was her friend Abigail, who had known her since she was a little girl, "Elsie, hello."

"Abigail? Is that you?" asked Elsie.

"Well, there's only one of me in this colony last I looked. I hope I'm not here to early."

"To early? For what?"

"For our day out of course. Have you've forgotten that today is your birthday?"

Elsie shook her head and continued, "My birthday, I totally forgot. I turn 219 today. I remember now."

Elsie was an Earth-born Gallifreyan who lived in an Earth colony on the planet Cass Caradrine, located in the Pegasus constellation. She was a young, fair-skinned woman with shoulder-length black hair and bright blue eyes. She often wore an outfit that looked like something crossed between Indiana Jones and Victorian steampunk, which included a black leather jacket, a Union Jack t-shirt, dark colored cargo shorts and dark colored laced up knee high leather boots along with other details which gave her outfit a distinct steampunk vibe minus any head gear.

Elsie quickly invited Abigail into her flat, unaware that they were being watched. Elsie then quickly went upstairs to get dressed as Abigail went to sit in the sofa. Upstairs, Elsie soon picked out something to wear, unaware of the danger that was quietly lurking underneath her bed, watching, waiting. Elsie quickly got dressed, then went back downstairs to fix up a snack of hazelnut coffee and lemon scones for her and Abigail.

Elsie spoke as she poured Abigail a cup of coffee, "So, how's work as a writer?"

"Not very good as of late, Elsie. It's like all the imagination and enthusiasm has been drained out of me. I haven't been able to think up anything decent to write since two weeks ago. I use to be so good at thinking up something to write. Now I'm lucky if I can think up anything, even a short story's worth of ideas."

"I know the feeling. I haven't been able to think up any short stories for the local newspaper since two weeks ago either. Maybe we both have writer's block or something. All writers get writer's block at some point in their lives."

"Elsie, I've never had writer's block in my life. Neither have you. It's unnatural for both of us to have writer's block."

"Which is probably the reason why we're having such a hard time dealing with it. Try finding inspiration, Abigail. It's easy to find if you know where to look."

"Yeah, well it's not easy for me like it is for you," said Abigail, drinking some of her coffee. Suddenly, there was a strange sound, a faint clicking and shrill and the sound of something scurrying across the floor of the kitchen, which was just off the living room. Elsie soon spoke, "Did you hear that, Abigail? It sounded like something scurrying in the kitchen."

"I don't hear anything Elsie but the sound of our footsteps walking out the door and heading to the shops. Let's get going, Elsie! It's time for our day out. It's your birthday afterall."

"Yes, we best get going. I need to get out of this flat for a while, I'm beginning to hear things that aren't there."

But Elsie wasn't hearing things that weren't there and soon she would learn the truth along with her friend Abigail. Outside, the world was lush, green and beautiful. On one side of the street that Elsie lived on was a bright spectrum of multi-story terraced houses of all bright colors and hues while on the other side there was a rainbow colored rot iron fence which separated the street from the large park beyond it, which featured several playgrounds, a youth and game center, a large fishing and swimming lake, bathing fountains, a large circular stone courtyard, a large fountain and garden area, a few greenhouses and many lush flower beds and herb gardens along with miles of pathways and sidewalks which went through the park and led to other parts of the colony.

The park was situated at the heart of the colony with the large circular stone courtyard, which was lined with park benches, marking the heart of the park, which had a fountain at the very center. A bright spectrum of park benches of all colors and hues as well as Victorian style street lamps lined all the pathways and sidewalks in the park on one side, while the flower beds and herb gardens were situated on the other side, all surrounded by lush, green forest.

Elsie and Abigail walked on the sidewalk along side the rot iron fence as Elsie spoke, "I need to get out of this colony, Abigail. Life here is just getting to boring for me. I want adventure, excitement in my life. I can't honestly get on as a writer if I'm stuck in one place forever."

"Oh not this again. Listen to me Elsie, you don't have the means to leave this colony, none of us do. We are all here because we signed up and volunteered to come here. And we are all happy here, be satisfied with that."

"I didn't leave Earth and come to this colony just so I can sit around and do nothing. I intended to become a writer for the company that makes Bartholonew's Galactic Guides, with all the money I would ever need to travel the universe. I want to see more than just one planet and one people, Abigail. I want to see more, much more."

"Well it didn't work out that way did it? Listen Elsie, let's not talk about this on your birthday. We should be celebrating, enjoying ourselves, not talking about things that will never come to be. A pipe dream that's all that is."

"Well it wouldn't be a pipe dream if I had made different decisions back then."

Abigail continued, "Come along, Elsie, let's not think about this and get to the shops. I'm sure there's lots to see down there."

As they continued down the sidewalk, both Abigail and Elsie walked side by side, laughing and giggling together. Then suddenly, Elsie stopped. Abigail then spoke, "Elsie, what is it?"

Elsie sniffed the air and spoke, "I thought I smelled...well that's not possible is it?"

"What is it? What do you smell?"

"A familiar scent, the scent of another one of my kind. I can smell it. Coming from this way," said Elsie as she started to walk down the sidewalk once more. Abigail soon followed.

Elsie continued to sniff the air, trying to find the source of the smell. This eventually led her and Abigail to the Shops. Here both sides of the street were lined with shops of all kinds, selling many goods from other planets including clothing, musical instruments and other strange and exotic items. Abigail soon spoke, looking through a shop window, "Well, at least we're where we are supposed to be. Come check this out, Elsie!"

"Not now Abigail, I need to find the source of the smell. I haven't seen another one of my kind in ages," said Elsie as she began crossing the street, unaware that a speeding car, which was a bright yellow Volkswagan Beetle, was baring down upon her. Abigail then looked back towards where Elsie was and cried out, "Elsie! Look out!"

Elsie screamed as she saw the car coming towards her, then suddenly someone yelled "Look out!" and grabbed hold of her, pulling her out of the path of the speeding car which drove on, turning a corner with its horn blaring. Elsie was stunned for a moment, then she looked over her shoulder and saw a man, who was actually the 12th Doctor, with his arms wrapped around her. He had saved her. A look of surprise fell upon the Doctor's face as he let go of Elsie, allowing her to turn around and face him. A look of recognition and surprise was on Elsie's face as she spoke, "Hold on, I know you."

Elsie had been having strange dreams as of late, one dream being about a man in a blue box coming to save her from a strange creature. She quickly recognized the Doctor as the man in her dreams. Elsie and the Doctor both spoke the same words at once, "I've seen you in my dreams!"

Elsie continued, "You to? But how long have you been dreaming about me?"

The Doctor replied, "Two weeks."

"Same," Elsie pointed at the Doctor and continued, "Hold on, you're who I smelled just now!"

"Apparently so. But I smelled you to. I could smell you all the way from the park. You're a member of my race. I didn't think there were others of my kind around here."

Abigail soon ran over to where Elsie and the Doctor was and spoke, "Elsie, what were you thinking crossing the street like that?! You could have been killed!"

"Actually, there's a more serious matter that we should be discussing that you have failed to notice."

"Like what?" asked Elsie.

"That car that almost hit you. Notice anything strange or odd about it?"

"Not really, I didn't really notice anything odd about it."

"That's because you weren't looking properly. That's how they keep you from noticing them, by wrapping your mind inside a perception filter. But at night, the perception filter becomes weaker and even breaks down in some places, blowing their cover. Have you been noticing anything odd around your house? Strange clicking sounds and scurrying about?" asked The Doctor, talking to Elsie.

"Doctor, what are you talking about?" asked Elsie, looking on.

"This whole colony is trapped in a lie. A lie made up from the collective imagination of the colonists themselves. We're trapped inside a dream cage, made of our own dreams and imagination but built by the creatures that wish to keep us in the dark and trapped inside it. There is another thing you should notice."

"What?"

"Where are all the other colonists?"

Elsie and Abigail looked around, noticing that it was just the three of them around them.

Abigail soon spoke, "Hold on what is going on here? There should be other people around."

"Exactly. And that car that almost hit Elsie, it didn't have a driver."

Elsie and Abigail looked at one another, confused.

The Doctor soon started walking as Elsie and Abigail followed. Elsie soon spoke, "So where are all the other colonists? Surely they've got to be around here somewhere."

"And given the time of day, they should be out," said Abigail, listening on.

The Doctor brought out his sonic screwdriver and scanned around with it as he continued, "Something very bad has happened here, something very strange and we need to figure out what's been going on for the past two weeks to cause all of this," The Doctor suddenly aimed his sonic down the entrance to an alleyway and continued, getting a strange reading on his sonic, "Hello, what is this?"

"What is it, Doctor?"

The Doctor quickly followed the signal on the sonic to an overturned wooden box and quickly knocked it over. There, hiding under the wooden box, was what looked like a strange glowing blue orb of energy. The Doctor continued, "Ahh, what is this then?"

"It looks like an orb. An orb made of some sort of energy," said Elsie, looking at the orb. Abigail stood back and watched from the entrance to the alleyway.

The Doctor scanned the orb with his sonic then looked at the results, "That's no ordinary energy, Elsie. The creatures aren't just feeding on your dreams and imagination, they are collecting it. These creatures are acting like bees, collecting your dreams and imagination like honey, turning your dreams and imagination into another form of energy and then storing it in orbs like this. But why, why are they collecting it?"

"Doctor, what creatures?"

"I call them the Dream Eaters, but there real name I do not know. They've been here for two weeks now, Elsie. A silent invasion, feeding upon and collecting your dreams and imagination, using it, exploiting it. But why they are collecting it, I do not know."

"So what are we going to do? How do we stop them?"

"We need to find there hive, the spaceship that brought them here. It must be somewhere in this colony or close to it."

Abigail soon spoke, looking towards something, "There's more people!"

The Doctor and Elsie quickly went back to the entrance to the alleyway and peered around the corner. Suddenly, the whole area was filled with other colonists of all ages. There were street vendors selling goods from clothing to food and people walking and bustling about. Elsie soon spoke, "Hold on, that's weird. How can they not be there one minute and then there the next?"

The Doctor went back to the orb as Elsie suddenly noticed that Abigail was missing, "Doctor, what happened to Abigail?"

"I think the orb has something to do with how the perception filter works. It's readjusting itself, adding elements to the..."

Elsie looked back at where the Doctor was, only to find that he to was missing. Elsie soon spoke, "Doctor! Doctor, where are you? Docto..."

Elsie suddenly stopped, suddenly hearing a familiar sound surrounding her, the sound of clicking and scurrying about. Then something strange happened. There was a flash of light then suddenly, Elsie found herself sitting on a park bench inside the park, far away from the shops. Elsie looked around confused for a moment then suddenly a memory popped into her mind, "Oh, I remember now. I came here to take some pictures."

Elsie suddenly noticed a camera hanging around her neck and soon grabbed hold of it. Elsie paused a moment before speaking again, "Strange. Was I daydreaming just now? Huh."

Elsie was not only a writer for the local newspaper, she was also a photographer, taking pictures to be published in the local newspaper. Realizing what time it was, Elsie quickly got up from the park bench and started taking pictures as if she had completely forgotten what had happened. As Elsie started taking pictures, she could hear music coming from a radio nearby. The song that was playing was titled _Walking On A Dream_ by _Empire Of The Sun_ , a favorite song of Elsie's.

Elsie took pictures of quite a few things that were going on in the park, unaware that she was being watched by something up in a nearby tree. Elsie soon walked down a pathway that led to a tunnel that went underneath a gray brick pathway bridge. As she kept taking pictures, she began to sense something familiar about her surroundings, as if she had seen the place before. Elsie soon brought down her camera and stopped. It was then that she remembered, "Wait, I know this place. The dream I had. I remember. I was walking down this pathway when..."

Suddenly, she heard a familiar clicking sound behind her. Elsie soon turned around and was suddenly face to face with the very creature from her dreams. At first, the creature looked like a furry black blob with long black tentacles trailing from it, clicking loudly.

Then suddenly it began to transform into something that looked like a flat faced creature with no eyes and with the head and body of a lion, all black and covered with scales and with a long scorpion-like tail that ended with a stinger. It had what appeared to be heat sensing gills on the sides of its face, which Elsie assumed was how the creature could see.

Sensing something ominous was about to happen, Elsie started to run, running towards the tunnel at the far end of the path. The creature quickly galloped after Elsie, making clicking and shrilling sounds as it chased her. All that Elsie could do was run, run as far away from the the creature as possible. Elsie soon reached the tunnel and was about to go inside, but then Elsie looked back only to see that the creature was right on top of her, about to attack.

Then suddenly, the familiar sound of the sonic screwdriver was heard, aimed right at the creature. Then a voice, the Doctor's voice, rang out, "Back! Get back I say!"

The creature began to hiss in disagreeement as the sound of the sonic was hurting its ears. Elsie looked behind her and noticed the Doctor, running out of the tunnel and running up next to her, keeping his sonic fixed on the creature as he spoke, "I said back! You can't feed on her! You can't feed on her anymore! Go back to your queen, whoever or whatever they may be!"

Suddenly, the creature spoke with a low, growling voice, "You know nothing of our plans, Time Lord. You are trapped here like everyone else in this colony and soon you will be integrated like all the others. You can not stop us!"

"I answered a distress call coming from this planet and ended up finding an even bigger problem than I originally thought. Do you know how that's like? So tell me, where is your queen? Where is your hive? I know that you are both feeding and collecting from all the people in this colony but why do that? What is the plan?"

"I will tell you nothing, Time Lord. You will soon be integrated, then we will feed upon you."

"I'd like to see you try."

The creature then suddenly transformed back into its original form, black blob with tentacles and quickly scurried away, vanishing into the underbrush. Elsie soon spoke as the Doctor brought down his sonic and hid it away, "What was that thing?!"

"That was a dream eater in the form of a Gallifreyan Mountain Manicore. I beginning to see how they work. Taking something from their victim's memory in order to scare them. These creatures are extremely powerful," The Doctor then turned to Elsie and continued, "So, we meet again."

"Again? Oh yes of course, but I thought I was daydreaming."

"You weren't. I'm the Doctor by the way. I remember you from my dreams."

"Same. I'm Elsie Kulbet."

"Elsie, an interesting name for an Earth-born Gallifreyan."

"I know. Hold on, how do you know I am an Earth-born Gallifreyan?"

"I've lived a long time, Elsie, I can tell. So, what are you doing in this colony?" asked the Doctor.

"I live here though I'd rather not," replied Elsie.

"I thought so."

"Thought what?"

"You're restless, Elsie. Your need and desire for a change. That's likely what attracted them to you."

The Doctor soon turned and went back towards the tunnel. Elsie quickly turned and followed.

Elsie spoke as she and the Doctor entered the tunnel and walked down it, "Doctor, I don't understand. How can my need for a change attract a creature like that?"

"With the dream eaters, it's a give and take situation with their victims. They take dreams and imagination from their victims but in turn they create a dream world around their victim made from the victim's own imagination in order to keep them happy but also keep them trapped. Ever heard of the dream crabs? It's allot like that, but different. They are attracted to people with allot of imagination who wish for a change. You might have noticed."

"Noticed what?"

"Do you feel that you have been lacking imagination and enthusiasm these past two weeks? As though your being drained of it?"

"Yes, I have been feeling like that. Even my friend Abigail has been feeling like that."

"That's because the dream eaters are eating your dreams and imagination alive. They are literally draining all the imagination out of you and then using it to build a world around you. The user becomes the experiencer. Though unlike the dream crabs, they are not sticking to your face while they feed upon you. No, they are plugged into you in a different way, different from the dream crabs and this whole colony is under their influence."

"So how do we stop them, these dream eaters?"

"The first thing we need to do is find out where they are hiding, where their hive is. If they are feeding and collecting dreams and imagination like a bee that collects nectar, they are likely living similar to a bee, complete with a queen and a hive."

"So how do we find them?"

"We need to catch a dream eater and put a tracking device on them. That way they will lead us back to the hive."

Elsie continued as she pointed back behind her, "But what about that dream eater we just encountered? We could have caught it."

"No, we couldn't have caught that one. We need a different dream eater, particularly one that is currently hiding out in someone's house. A dream eater contained."

Elsie looked into space for a moment, remembering something as she spoke, "I know where we can find one," The Doctor looked at Elsie as Elsie then looked at him and continued, "Back at my flat."

A few minutes later, the TARDIS materialized inside Elsie's flat, landing in her living room. The Doctor soon stepped out, aiming his sonic around while Elsie stepped out of the TARDIS and spoke, "Doctor, it's amazing in there."

"I know. Being an Earth-born Gallifreyan you've probably never seen the inside of a TARDIS before."

"Actually I have, when I was little. I saw the inside of my father's TARDIS a few times, but it was nothing like what I saw in your TARDIS."

The Doctor scanned the living room with his sonic then looked at the results, "Fascinating."

"What is?"

"This place is infested with dream eaters. We must be close to an entrance to the hive. But where is it?"

Elsie quickly glanced over towards the kitchen, where she caught a brief glimpse of a dream eater scurrying across the floor, "Doctor, there's one in the kitchen!"

"Where?"

"I just saw it now! It's in my kitchen!"

The Doctor used his sonic to scan the kitchen area and then looked at the results, "Interesting. The perception filter is weaker around here. We're near a hive entrance for sure," The Doctor then turned to Elsie and spoke, "Why did you decide to live here in this flat?"

"I don't know. I just woke up one morning and found myself here."

"And you didn't find that strange?"

"Well no, I suppose not since I recognized everything in here as mine. But I had gone to the club the night before and thought I just had to much to drink. Do you think it's significant?"

"Everything is significant when it comes trying to free this colony from the dream eaters. You must have had an enormous amount of imagination and enthusiasm for the dream eaters to want you so close to them. What do you do for a living?"

"I'm a photographer and an artist, but I also write allot. Well not as much as I should be during these past couple weeks. I feel drained, as if my imagination and enthusiasm are being torn away from me."

"The right kind of occupations that someone with lots of imagination and enthusiasm would do. They are feeding on you and collecting from you Elsie."

"Oh no, Doctor, I can't live without my imagination and enthusiasm. In need those to work."

"I know, Elsie, I know," said the Doctor, walking into the kitchen and scanning the area with his sonic. The Doctor's sonic zeroed in on the spot where the dream eater in the kitchen was hiding s he spoke, "Hello? I know you're hiding in there. Come out and show yourself."

Elsie watched as the Doctor got closer to where the dream eater was. Suddenly there was a loud shrill as the dream eater jumped out of its hiding place and attempted to latch onto the Doctor's face with its tentacles. The Doctor quickly fought off the creature and started chasing after it as it scurried across the floor. After a couple failed attempts at catching the creature, which made clicking sounds as it scurried and ran, The Doctor followed the creature upstairs as it was running across the wall, going into Elsie's bedroom. Elsie quickly followed behind the Doctor. The Doctor soon spoke as Elsie entered her bedroom, "Elsie, down here."

The Doctor was lying down on the floor looking at something underneath Elsie's bed. Elsie soon lied down next to the Doctor and looked at what the Doctor was looking at. Elsie soon spoke, "Doctor, it's another one of those strange blue orbs. I didn't notice it under my bed before."

"That's because this orb is brand new, containing a new collection of your dreams and imagination. The dream eaters in your flat have been busy feeding and collecting from you. We all think we are awake when we are actually asleep."

"Doctor, could I be asleep?"

"Likely, very likely. We are sharing the same dreams, Elsie. But how we are sharing them I do not know."

"So what happened to the dream eater we were chasing?"

"It's under the bed, with the orb," said the Doctor, aiming his sonic towards the far end of the bed. Suddenly, there was another loud shrill and the dream eater popped out from a box that was under the bed, grabbing the orb with its tentacles and began running away with it.

"Got it!" yelled the Doctor, seeing a chance to catch the dream eater. The Doctor quickly grabbed the dream eater with both his bare hands as it was running away with the orb. The dream eater began to squeak loudly as the Doctor held it with both his hands. The dream eater tried to wrap its tentacles around the Doctor's neck as he ran out the bedroom door, running downstairs to the TARDIS, struggling with the dream eater as he went.

"Elsie!" called the Doctor as she quickly followed him back into the TARDIS, closing the doors behind her. A few minutes later, the doors opened and the dream eater scurried out. The Doctor soon spoke, standing at the open doors, "Now we will see where they are hiding out. Follow that dream eater!"

The Doctor used his sonic to track the dream eater as he stepped out of the TARDIS once more with Elsie. They quickly followed the dream eater out the front door, across the street and into the park.

"This way, Elsie!" yelled the Doctor as Elsie continued to follow him.

Elsie soon spoke, "So what are we going to do if we find the entrance to their hive?"

"We're going to find the queen and see if we can reason with her."

"And if that doesn't work?"

"We'll think of something."

They kept following the dream eater all the way to a wall that was covered in brightly colored abstract graffiti. They suddenly saw the dream eater scurry right through the wall, causing the Doctor and Elsie to stop and look for a moment. Then the Doctor spoke as he used his sonic to scan the wall, "Of course, the entrance would be invisible. It's a dream cage. The whole colony is trapped inside it."

"So how do we get out and free the colonists?"

"We don't, at least not this way. We both need to wake up!"

... **Continued Chapter 2**...


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2** :

"Arrgh!" cried Elsie as she woke with a start, finding herself in what looked like some sort of escape pod in the middle of a vast, open desert of bright white sand. As she moved her body around inside the small space inside the escape pod, Elsie briefly noticed a light flashing on the control panel inside the escape pod. She then suddenly remembered, "Wait, I remember now. I was inside of a transport ship heading for the planet Arsharidine. I remember the ship blowing up, the screaming..."

Elsie covered her eyes with her hands as images filled her mind. She remembered being a passenger on the ship, which was just leaving Earth. Then halfway through the journey to planet Arsharidine, something strange and terrifying happened. The dream eaters were discovered to be on the ship and began to attack the passengers and crew. In a last ditch effort to stop them, the captain of the ship blew up the ship, apparently knowing what they were and why they were there. Elsie remembered herself and others getting into escape pods and fleeing the ship before it exploded, but after that it she couldn't remember. Then she remembered what the light flashing on the control panel meant and spoke, "Wait, I remember activating the distress signal before..."

Suddenly, Elsie stopped and looked down towards her right shoulder. There, lying next to her in the escape pod was a dream eater. "Arrgh!" cried Elsie as she quickly opened up the escape pod and jumped out of it. But once she was out of the escape pod, she realized that the dream eater wasn't moving, appearing to be dead. She began to look around, suddenly realizing that she was stuck in the middle of nowhere, unsure of where to go and what to do next, with her escape pod as the only form of shelter around her. Then she remembered that she had brought along her favorite bright blue outdoor sling back pack which was bigger on the inside and included a survival pack (and much more besides), complete with binoculars, food packs, a 12 function multi-tool, several articles of clothing, a long length of rope, matches and a compass.

She quickly retrieved her outdoor sling back pack from the escape pod, keeping her eye on the seemingly dead dream eater. She then quickly placed her outdoor sling back pack over her shoulder and started to trek across the bright white sand, noticing a mountain range not far from the escape pod. After a few minutes of walking, she started to once again hear the familiar sound of clicking and shrilling close by. She looked behind her but didn't see anything. After a couple more minutes of walking, Elsie finally reached the base of the mountain range and started walking alongside it.

Suddenly, she began to hear what sounded like a conversation between two men as the clicking and shrilling became louder, coming from somewhere behind her. Elsie followed the voices of the men to where they were, camped in a field of boulders. Elsie kept hidden behind a boulder, listening to the men as they spoke. Only they were not speaking English but in an alien language that she didn't understand. She listened to the two men talk for about a minute when suddenly, they started to speak English as one of the men spoke, "Shhhh, what was that?"

The other man soon spoke, looking towards the direction of where Elsie was hiding, "It came from over there!"

But Elsie kept well hidden, not wanting to be seen. Then suddenly, someone grabbed Elsie from behind and placed a hand over her mouth. Elsie let out a muffled scream as she was pulled away from the boulder. After a moment of panic and terror, a familiar voice spoke, "Elsie, it's alright, it's only me."

Elsie looked over her shoulder and saw that it was the Doctor. The Doctor soon let go of Elsie and smiled as Elsie spoke, "Doctor, don't scare me like that! Where did you come from?! What's going on?!"

"Shhh, we need to be quiet and listen," said the Doctor, who looked around the corner at the two men, who started to talk again, this time in English. One man spoke, "Do you think some of them survived the explosion?"

The other man spoke, "I don't know, Tergin. If any of them did survive, I dread to think what they are doing right now."

"You know what they are doing, Gynar. They are forwarding their invasion. Our team must think we're dead after the explosion."

"Well they will send a rescue party after us, Tergin. Won't they? Afterall, we are important members of the team. They wouldn't just leave us all alone out here. You did activate the distress signal didn't you?"

"Yes I did Gynar but you do not understand. This would be just the excuse they would need to get rid of us! I told them that it was wrong to use such creatures in the experiments, especially sentient creatures like them who feed on the dreams and imaginations of others."

Elsie gasped quietly, then spoke to the Doctor, "The dream eaters. They are talking about the dream eaters."

"Shhh," said the Doctor, listening on.

Tergin continued, "We had to stop them, Gynar. It was getting to dangerous. I fear that some of them did survive and have since produced more of their kind, which would allow them to harvest even more dreams and imagination. All those poor lost souls, trapped in the dream space. Some of them don't even know that they are dead," - The Doctor and Elsie looked at one another as Tergin continued, "But what's done is done. Now all we can do is wait and hope that we are rescued from this place and soon before we become victims ourselves."

The Doctor, not wanting to linger any longer, then turned to Elsie and spoke, "Come on, let's get back to the TARDIS before..." - But as the Doctor and Elsie turned to go back in the direction where the Doctor came from, they suddenly found themselves looking down the barrel of a laser riffle, aimed right at the Doctor's head. The Doctor paused for a moment before he spoke, "Oh hello. We didn't see you there. Don't mind us, we were just leaving. We didn't mean to bother you or your little gang."

The man with the laser riffle, named Jeris, then spoke, "Hands up!"

Elsie and the Doctor quickly raised their hands up as Jeris called out, "Gynar! Tergin! We've got company!"

Gynar quickly appeared with his own laser riffle and aimed it at the Doctor and Elsie as he came to Jeris's side. Tergin soon followed, walking up behind the Doctor and Elsie. The Doctor and Elsie, with their hands still raised, turned to face Tergin as Tergin spoke, "Fascinating. You two are not of my race. Yet I can see in your eyes that you were under the influence of the creatures that eat dreams. What are your names?"

"I'm the Doctor and this is Elsie. Don't you mean the dream eaters? That's what I call them you know since I don't actually know what they are called."

"What do you know about them?" asked Tergin.

The Doctor replied, "Well I know that they are shapechangers and that they eat as well as collect dreams and imagination from their victims. I know that they use the imagination of their victims to create dream worlds around their victims in order to keep them trapped and happy so that they can continue to feed and collect from them. And of course they can talk."

"Correct, you know quite allot about them, but not everything. We don't know what they actually call themselves either and we still have to be sure that you two aren't a pair of them," Tergin looked over at Gynar and spoke, "Scan them."

"Hands down!" said Gynar as the Doctor and Elsie brought down their hands. The Doctor continued as Gynar brought out a strange scanning device and began to scan the Doctor and Elsie with it, "Well if you do know more about them, I would like to know and what about these experiments you were just talking about?"

"You were listening in I see. It's nothing that you need to know about at the moment," Tergin once again looked at Gynar and continued, "Well Gynar?"

"They aren't of the creatures, Tergin, but of something far more interesting. They are Time Lords."

Jeris spoke, "Time Lords! But that means that they must have a TARDIS nearby," Jeris then faced the Doctor and Elsie and continued, his laser riffle still aimed at the Doctor and Elsie, "Where is your TARDIS? We demand that you take us home immediately!"

"Now Jeris, there is no need to demand there help. Besides, they are likely here because they answered our distress signal. You are here because you answered our distress signal, is that correct?"

"Well, yes and no," said the Doctor, "I did come down here because of a distress signal, but I don't think it was your distress signal that I picked up on."

"Never the less, you are here and you can help us."

"Not until I know more about these experiments and what they have to do with the dream eaters."

"The dream eaters?" asked Gynar.

"The creatures you are talking about, it's what I call them. So tell me about these experiments."

Tergin paused a moment before he spoke again, "What you have said about them is all true, though how you know about them I do not know."

"Well let's just say that my people have dealt with them before so I know."

"True, these creatures have attempted to invade this universe before though not at the level that they are trying to achieve now."

"I'm listening, go on."

"My people, my team, believe that the creatures have created a device that is able to punch holes in the fabric of space, creating gateways which lead to the Void and to other dimensions. We believe that the creatures are collecting dreams and imaginations in order to create the energy needed to power this device. This device they intend to use in order to open up a gateway which will allow more of their kind to enter this universe and invade it. As you may know, these creatures have the ability to manipulate your dreams as well as create them. Not only do they intend to make you happy while they feed and collect from you, they also make you think and percieve what you are seeing as real. When my people discovered these creatures, we saw an opportunity. An opportunity to use their abilities against our enemies who use dreams and visions in order to communicate. In the beginning, the creatures cooperated, helping us in our mental warfare experiments."

"Ah, I see. Their ability to manipulate dreams gave you that idea."

"Well that was the point of the experiments. The creatures can project images, dreams into the minds of our enemies, making them see and percieve things...differently."

"So how did the creatures get here then?"

"They are creatures of the Void, Time Lord. Naturally we had to use Voidships to bring them here."

"How many?"

"Oh about a dozen of them originally. But then they began to reproduce, making even more of themselves."

"So let me guess, something happened to make you change your view and outlook on the situation."

"Quite so, Doctor. We discovered that they had plans of their own for they to saw an opportunity, a chance to escape the Void and make this universe their new feeding ground. Their intention of course was to enslave everyone in this universe and put everyone under their influence thus trapping their victims in a type of dream space, a dimension where even those who are dead are trapped within it, with them never knowing that they are actually dead."

"Well were not dead and we were in this dream space."

"I didn't say that everyone in the dream space was dead, Time Lord, though most of them are by now."

"And what about the transport ship exploding?"

"Oh that. Well, we weren't about to let the creatures take advantage of this universe so we had to _dispose_ of them as it were."

"You know you could have just sent them back to the Void instead of murdering them."

"We tried that, Doctor, but they refused to go back so we took the next best option."

Elsie then spoke angrily, "There were more then just the creatures onboard that ship! You murdered them all!"

"It's true that sacrifices had to be made in order to save the universe from the creatures. Even you Time Lords should understand how important it was to destroy them before there plans went into action."

"So you and your little gang here blew up the transport ship."

"An unfortunate turn of events I know but we made certain that all of the creatures were onboard before sending them off on that ship. The creatures believed that they were going to new feeding grounds on planet Arsharidine. Of course they didn't get there. However now we believe that some of them survived and are currently somewhere around here."

"Who are no doubt seeking revenge on those who tried to kill them."

Gynar spoke, "They do not know who tried to kill them so they are not seeking revenge on anyone."

"That is what you think," the Doctor said as he stepped in front of Elsie, took out his sonic screwdriver and spoke to her, "Elsie, get behind me."

"Whatever for?"

"Because we are not alone here," said the Doctor, who then spoke to Tergin, "Look behind you, Tergin."

Tergin looked behind him and down at the ground, where he saw over a half dozen dream eaters, watching and listening. The Doctor soon spoke, speaking to Elsie, "It seems that they were originally following you and me, Elsie but we lead them to those that tried to murder them and let's just say that they are not to happy about it."

Gynar and Jeris quickly shifted their attention on the dream eaters and began shooting at them with their laser riffles, trying to fight them off. But the dream eaters would not be scared off that easily. Suddenly, the dream eaters, all furry blobs and tentacles, massed together to form one single creature, which quickly pulled the laser riffles away from the two men. Seeing a chance to escape, the Doctor nudged Elsie back towards the direction from where he came from, but soon realized that they were surrounded.

Elsie then spoke, speaking to the dream eater that was blocking the path, "Don't mind us. We aren't the ones that tried to murder you!"

The Doctor quickly aimed the sonic screwdriver at the dream eater, scaring it off. The sound of the sonic was hurting the creature's ears. Then the Doctor quickly aimed the sonic screwdriver at the mass of dream eaters, causing the creature they made to fall apart and scatter. The Doctor then shouted out, "Run!"

Everyone in the group quickly ran and followed the Doctor, trying to get away from the dream eaters. The dream eaters began to chase after the group, clicking and shrilling as they scurried across the sand after them. They were quick on their tentacles. After about a couple minutes of running, they all made it back to the TARDIS and quickly ran inside, just outpacing the dream eaters. The Doctor quickly slammed the TARDIS doors and locked them as the dream eaters began to surround the TARDIS, trying to find a way to get in. What the Doctor and the others didn't know was that one dream eater managed to get in the TARDIS and was currently hiding underneath the control console.

The TARDIS dematerialized and took off as the Doctor punched in coordinates and spoke, "That was close, a little to close."

"What do we do Doctor?" asked Elsie.

The Doctor replied to Elsie, but looked towards Tergin, Gynar and Jeris as he continued, "I say we complete the journey that the transport ship would have taken had it not been blown up by these three! My guess is that the transport ship was automated, programed to land at a specific location on planet Arsharidine."

Tergin spoke, trying to catch his breath, "You are right, Time Lord. The ship was on auto-pilot, preprogrammed to land near our newest testing facility on planet Arsharidine. Of course the creatures didn't know that."

"Well you're going to lead us right to the location so that we can see what you and your people have been doing to the dream eaters!"

Gynar spoke, "We don't hurt them Time Lord if that is what you are thinking. They cooperated with us."

The Doctor continued, "They only cooperated because they see an opportunity to exploit a new source of food. You were right about one thing Tergin, the creatures needed to be stopped. They were using your people to get to a new food source. They intended to..."

Suddenly, they all heard the familiar sound of clicking and shrilling underneath the control console. The Doctor continued, speaking calmly and quietly as he looked and saw the dream eater, trying not to scare it, "Elsie, there is a glass container with holes in the lid in the green room just past the doorway to the left of you," Elsie noticed the doorway as the Doctor continued, "I want you to get the container and bring it back here quickly."

Elsie quickly went through the doorway as the Doctor used his sonic to try an hypnotize the dream eater. The dream eater began to click and shrill loudly as the sonic began to work it's magic on the dream eater. Elsie quickly came back with the container, watching as the Doctor then quickly grabbed the dream eater by its furry blob body and told Elsie to bring over the container. The Doctor quickly broke the trance between the sonic and the dream eater as he quickly placed the dream eater inside the contrainer. The dream eater began to squeak inside the container as the lid to the container came over top of it, trapping it inside.

Everyone let out a sigh of relief as the Doctor calmly picked up the container with the dream eater inside and spoke, "Well that was easy wasn't it?"

Jeris then spoke, talking to Tergin, "Hey Tergin, isn't that container just the right size for the machine?"

Tergin looked at the container and spoke, "Yes, yes I should think so."

Gynar soon spoke, "Is it compatible with the machine? I hope it is otherwise what we are thinking about doing won't work."

"Hold on, what are you three talking about?" asked Elsie, listening on.

Tergin continued, "It's called the dreamer machine, a piece of equipment that we transported from our base to the planet Arsharidine in the first transport. The dreamer machine is able to project your mind into the dream space, allowing you to reenter it. However it needs a live specimen, namely a dream eater in order to work properly. We suspect that the machine that the dream eaters have built and its power source lie hidden within the dream space, this dimension they have created to trap their victims in. We need someone to go into the dream space, find the machine and destroy it if they can. Since you two already have dream eater spore infecting your minds, you would be doing us a favor to volunteer for the task. Naturally you will not be going alone. We have people waiting for us on planet Arsharidine that will likely want to come along and help you."

Elsie soon spoke, "I have a question. What happens to us if we die while we are in the dream space?"

"That's very unlikely to happen, but if it does, you will be immediately sent back to your point of origin, namely your body. Of course many of people currently trapped inside the dream space are in fact dead, they just don't know it. The dream eaters don't distinguish between those who are dead and living, they continue to feed on you even when dead."

"And how do you know that most of the people trapped inside the dream space are dead?" asked the Doctor.

"We've studied these creatures for a long time, Time Lord. We know what happens to their victims in the end."

"Complete mental burnout," said Gynar.

"An unfortunate end to an imaginative mind. But let's hope that none of us end like that," said Jeris.

A few minutes later, the TARDIS materialized, landing in the location where the transport ship would have landed. Everyone in the group then stepped out of the TARDIS and looked around before the Doctor saw a large futuristic-looking building not far from where they landed. The Doctor stood next to Elsie and pointed towards the building as he spoke, "There Elsie, is where we need to go."

"It's beautiful."

Tergin soon spoke, "A true and proper scientific establishment. It was only built 2 months ago, when we started the mental warfare experiments. Come along this way."

The Doctor closed the TARDIS door watching as Gynar held the container which held the dream eater they captured. The group began walking towards the building, looking around at the vast open grassland that surrounded the building. Upon reaching the large doors to the building, he group stopped, watching as Tergin pressed a button on the door, causing a panel to open, revealing a key pad. Tergin pressed buttons on the key pad as he spoke, "Now, I am going to have to prepare you for what you are about to see in this place or more rather who you are about to see. My team doesn't just consist of my people, but other members of other alien races as well. We are a research team, doing what we have always done since discovering this universe long ago. As you may know, my people are not native to this universe nor are any of the other races that you will be seeing here. We all came here from the Void by voidship and have several experiments going on at the same time so be sure to stay close and don't wander off."

"Oh don't worry, we will stick close to you, won't we Elsie?"

"I suppose so," said Elsie, looking on.

The doors to the building then automatically slid open, revealing a long, brightly lit hallway. As the group entered, they noticed other people of various alien races bustling about, going from room to room connected to the hallway and carrying books and other items of interest. The Doctor spoke to Elsie as he and the others were walking down he hallway, "You may not believe this Elsie, but I have encountered Void life before."

"Void life?"

"Beings and creatures from the Void. Back when I was about your age and starting off, I encountered an alien race known as the Nerphiline, a race of bird-like humanoid beings which originated from the Void. I visited their Library of Infinite Knowledge and learned a great deal about the alien creatures and other races that live in the Void."

"So you must recognize quite a few of the alien races that we are seeing here."

"Not all of them, Elsie, but I do recognize a few from pictures. The Void you see is another dimension and can be best described as a vast, infinite ocean, mostly barren and lifeless. It is mostly the dead, dark space between other universes. But as you might have realized, there are some areas of the Void where life flourishes."

"I remember an incident when I was little about a place called Canary Warf where Daleks were defeated by being thrown into the Void and trapped forever within it."

"I was there, Elsie. I sent those Daleks into a barren, lifeless part of the Void. But if I know Daleks, those Daleks have probably found the means to survive within the Void as well. Hold on, how do you know about Daleks?"

"You would be surprised at what I know even when an Earth-Born Gallifreyan, Doctor."

"We're here," said Tergin as he stopped in front of an entrance to another hallway. Gynar soon walked past the others, holding the container with the dream eater inside it up in front of him. Jeris followed Gynar, walking past the Doctor. Elsie soon spoke, realizing something, "Doctor, are you sure that this dreamer machine that they spoke about is safe? I mean, we haven't actually agreed to help them have we?"

"We need to find out what the dream eaters are doing and why or else those stuck in the dream space will keep on dreaming and being farmed."

"This way you two," said Tergin as he followed after Jeris. The Doctor and Elsie soon followed.

Elsie continued as she and the Doctor walked down the narrow hallway, "Where are we going, Doctor?"

"Apparently we are going to the room where the dreamer machine is located. Strange how no one has approached us since entering here."

Tergin spoke, overhearing what was being said, "They don't need to approach us, they already know we're here," Tergin pointed at the camera that was situated in a corner of the hallway, which was pointed right at the group, following them. The Doctor soon spoke, "Who knows we're already here, your boss?"

Tergin continued, "In a manner of speaking, but there is more than one. No time to explain, the dreamer machine is just through here. Follow me."

The Doctor and Elsie soon entered a room, at the center of which stood a strange looking machine that was circled around by futuristic-looking chairs which were attached to the machine by cables and extensions. The Doctor and Elsie watch as Gynar placed the container with the dream eater inside it into a slot at the center of the machine.

Gynar soon spoke, "The dreamer machine is primed. Ready for those entering the dream space."

The Doctor soon noticed that there were other people in the room besides Gynar and Jeris. Other members of Tergin's people were getting into the chairs and placing strange headsets on their heads which had cables and wires attached to them. Then the Doctor noticed that there was one person in the room that was not of Tergin's people, which was a humanoid female with the head of a cobra and with blue-green snake-like skin, wearing a metallic colored catsuit. The Doctor recognized the alien being as a member of an alien race of telepaths native to the Void.

The Doctor spoke, "Ah, a member of the Cobardine race I see. Am I to assume that she will be joining our little group as well?"

"You assume correctly, Doctor. She will help us communicate and translate any messages and visions that we might see or hear while in the dream space. The dream space can be a hostile place so we need to prepare you for what you are about to experience."

The Doctor continued, "Well having been there already, I know what I'm going to experience as does Elsie." The Doctor looked up at the camera in the far corner of the room and spoke, "Fascinating. Is there any chance that you might take me to your leader Tergin?"

Tergin spoke, "There is no time for that right now, Doctor. We need to focus on stopping the dream eaters and their plan. Everyone into your chairs! That includes you and Elsie, Doctor."

Elsie spoke, "Hold on, why would you need us for?"

Jeris spoke as he got into a chair as placed a headset on his head, "Your kind have encountered the dream eaters before. You can help us figure out how to defeat them and destroy the machine that they are building."

"What makes you think this machine that they are buidling even exists?" asked the Doctor,

The Cobardine female then spoke with a hissing voice, flicking her tongue, "Sssssss, I have seen visionssss of the machine within my own mind's eyesssss. Ssssssss, they plan to use the machine to open a gateway into the Void which will allow more of there kind to enter thissssss universe. We must stop them before they succeed ssssssss."

Tergin soon spoke as he got into his chair, "We've wasted to much time already. Everyone put on your headsets and get in your chairs! Our bosses are waiting."

The Doctor quickly jumped into a chair and placed a headset on his head as Elsie spoke, "Waiting? Waiting for what?"

"Don't worry Elsie. We will sort this all out. Now get in the chair next to me."

"Doctor, why are we cooperating like this? Shouldn't we be...?"

The Doctor looked at Elsie and spoke, "Elsie, trust me, I know what I am doing."

Reluctantly, Elsie got in the empty chair to the left of the Doctor and placed the headset on her head. Gynar then spoke as he stood next to the control panel controlling the dreamer machine, "Everyone lie back, relax and close your eyes," everyone in the group sitting in chairs, 11 people in total, soon lied back in their chairs in a reclining position and waited. Gynar then pressed buttons on the control panel and counted down as the dreamer machine activated, "Full immersion in 10 seconds. 9...8...7...6...5...4...3...2...1...0!"

Suddenly, something strange happened. There was a bright flash of light and Elsie suddenly found herself once again in her flat, lying in her sofa covered up with a blanket and with a pillow under her head. Suddenly, there was a knock at her front door. A confused Elsie soon went to the door and opened it. She soon realized that it was Abigail. Abigail soon spoke, acting as though she had forgotten about the earlier incident, "Elsie! What are you doing cooped up in your flat all day on your birthday?! It's time for the 3Ds!"

Elsie spoke, "What do you mean I've been in my flat all day? I've..." then suddenly she forgot and remembered something else, "Oh, I remember now. I've been in my flat all day. That's strange, I could have sworn that..."

"Stop talking and get dressed you! We're going to Chandelier's for your birthday! Hurry up!"

Elsie quickly went upstairs and got dressed as though she had forgotten all that had happened to her. And soon, she and Abigail were on their way to the night club, oblivious to what was going on.

... **Continued Chapter 3**...


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3** :

The scene was electric as Elsie and Abigail entered the night club known as Chandelier's. Along with human colonists, there were alien beings of all kinds everywhere within the night club, a few of which were poll dancing on platforms around the dance floor. The song Revolution 909 by Daft Punk was playing to a packed dance floor as Elsie and Abigail sat down at a table alongside the dance floor, watching as humans and aliens alike dance with one another on the dance floor. Elsie was suddenly in awe by the sight as lights of different colors flashed to the beat of the music, lighting up the dance floor in a technicolor light show.

Abigail soon spoke, "I say, it's mad in here tonight. So many aliens are here. I see a couple handsome men in the corner over there, Elsie. Why don't we go speak to them? Maybe they will offer us a drink."

"Now Abigail, I know what you are trying to do. I told you, if I want a boyfriend I will find one."

Then Elsie felt a tap on her shoulder. She looked behind her as a familiar voice spoke, "Care if I sit next to you, Elsie?"

Elsie gasped, suddenly remembering what had happened earlier, "Doctor! It's you! How did you find me?! Wait, I forgot about earlier, but now I remember again. What is going on around here?! Where are the others?!"

"You forgot, we are sharing dreams remember? So I can easily find you. As for the others, I don't know where they are. It's the dream eater spore in our brains you see, it possesses strange effects. I knew that we would be sent back to our original locations once we re-entered the dream space so now we can investigate this little mystery without Tergin and his little gang hovering over us."

Abigail soon spoke, confused, "Elsie, do you know this man? Who is he and what is he talking about?"

Elsie soon replied, "Oh, the Doctor? He's a friend," then Elsie remembered the incident which occurred earlier with the Volkswagen Beetle and remembered that Abigail was there, "Hold on, you've already met..."

The Doctor raised a hand, stopping Elsie in mid-sentence as he spoke, "No need to remind her of that, Elsie. We've got enough to worry about without getting her involved again."

"Like what, Doctor?"

"We need to look for the dream eater hive, Elsie. And I think I know exactly where it is now. But first, we're going to have to pack for the trip."

Abigail then continued, still confused and looking on, "What are you two talking about?!"

"Excuse me," said the Doctor, placing his index finger to the center of Abigail's forehead, which instantly caused her to fall asleep as her head fell to the table. Elsie soon protested, "Doctor!"

"Sorry, I had to. Don't worry, she will wake up in a few minutes with no memory of you being here with her. She will carry on her evening without you. Come along, Elsie, let's get out of here."

And with that, the Doctor got up and headed towards the doors to the night club with Elsie following close behind, giving one last look of concern at Abigail. After a few minutes of walking, the Doctor and Elsie reached Elsie's flat. The Doctor waited in Elsie's living room next to the TARDIS, which was still in the same spot the Doctor left it a few hours ago. The Doctor brought out his sonic screwdriver and once again scanned the living room. He then looked at the results and then hid it away as Elsie came back downstairs, holding a familiar object.

"So, the blue sling backpack that you left in my TARDIS back in the real world is here to I see."

"What are you talking about? It's been in my bedroom the..."

The Doctor looked at Elsie with a knowing smile, then Elsie remembered as she spoke, "Oh...Ohhhh, I see. But how can it be here and back there at the same time?"

"I'm not entirely sure, Elsie but I think it has something to do with the dream eater's influence over us. It's the same situation with the TARDIS here. Unfortunately we will not be traveling in the TARDIS to where we are going."

"But where are we going?"

"To the place where we last were before leaving the dream space. It's still there, the spot where we tracked the dream eater we caught earlier. It's where we need to be. Come along, Elsie and bring your sling backpack. We're going to need it."

And with that, the Doctor walked out the front door to Elsie's flat. Elsie soon followed. They soon re-entered the park and found their way back to the wall where they tracked the dream eater they caught earlier. The Doctor brought out his sonic screwdriver and scanned the wall, "It's here, Elsie, the entrance."

"The entrance to what, Doctor?"

"To the dream eater hive. But you never know here in the dream space. We need to be on our guard when we enter, Elsie. Keep your backpack close. Now, if I could just break the perception filter here..."

The Doctor scanned the wall once more, causing a doorway, which was invisible before, to suddenly appear. Elsie soon spoke as the Doctor hid away the sonic again, "Where did that doorway come from?"

"It's always been there, Elsie. But the perception filter around it causes it to be invisible so you don't see it. Come along, Elsie."

"But where does it go?"

"Well let's have a look shall we? Come on," said the Doctor as he cautiously crossed the threshold of the doorway and entered. Elsie slowly and cautiously followed, keeping hold of her sling backpack. She soon found herself in what appeared to be some sort of futuristic-looking corridor which had multiple doorways on either side. The Doctor looked around and spoke, noticing that the walls of the corridor were covered thick with spider web, or what appeared to be spider web, "Interesting."

"What is?"

"All these doorways lead to other dream cages. There's no denying that we are inside the dream eater hive Elsie, but where are all the dream eaters?"

The Doctor took out his sonic and started scanning the walls as Elsie began to look through other doorways. Through one doorway, she saw a vast, open desert of tall sand dunes, then through another doorway she saw a thick hostile-looking alien jungle. Then the Doctor spoke, looking at the results of his scan on his sonic before hiding it away again, "No, no that can't be."

"What? What is it, Doctor?"

"Fascinating. This appears to be spider web Elsie, but in fact it's acting like one vast and complicated nervous system. All these doorways are connected through this nervous system. A living hive, Elsie, it's all connected. It might even be self-aware. Which means..."

"Means what, Doctor?"

"The dream eaters know that we're here," The Doctor suddenly grabbed hold of a strand of what appeared to be spider web and held it. He then closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them again. He then continued, "Oh I see."

"What is it, Doctor?"

"Not just a living hive, Elsie, but a collective consciousness. The dream eaters are also connected to one another through this nervous system, but there is something very familiar about the core consciousness at its heart."

"Core consciousness?"

"I'm thinking it is the queen, but I am not sure. We're going to have to be careful while were here, Elsie. Try to get to the heart of this hive without running into to many dream eaters along the way. We're not exactly close to the heart of the hive, so it will take us some time to get there."

The Doctor and Elsie kept talking, unaware that a dream eater had latched itself onto a nearby wall, watching them and walking across it towards them. It clicked and shrilled quietly as it crept ever closer to the Doctor and Elsie. Then the Doctor noticed it and spoke, "Well, if it isn't our little friend from earlier."

Elsie quickly turned around and faced the dream eater as it suddenly leaped from the wall and started scurrying across the floor towards her, shrilling loudly. The Doctor brought out his sonic and aimed it at the dream eater as he stepped out in front of Elsie and spoke, "Back! Back you!"

The dream eater stopped and looked up at the Doctor as Elsie spoke, standing behind the Doctor and holding onto him, "Where did that come from?"

"We're inside the dream eater hive, Elsie. We were bound to run into dream eaters sooner or later."

Elsie then noticed that there were other dream eaters, surrounding her and the Doctor, as if they were trying to get them to go through another doorway.

"Doctor, they aren't attacking us! What are they doing?" asked Elsie, holding onto the Doctor's arm and looking around her at all the dream eaters surrounding her and the Doctor.

"I think they are waiting for us to run, but we need to stand our ground, Elsie."

"Gahhh!" cried Elsie, noticing a dream eater on the wall next to her.

The Doctor aimed his sonic all around, trying to keep the dream eaters at bay as he and Elsie slowly pushed their way through the group of dream eaters around them, going down the corridor side by side. After walking down the corridor for about a minute, they are forced down a branching corridor, heading towards a room at the far end.

"They are trying to trap us. We can't let that happen. Time for a detour," said the Doctor, realizing what was happening as he quickly pushed Elsie through a doorway. Suddenly, Elsie found herself on top of a hill, looking down at a bright and glistening futuristic city. The Doctor quickly reappeared beside Elsie and spoke, "Well that was a close one."

"Doctor, where are we? Did we just enter another dream cage?"

"I'm afraid we had to, the dream eaters were trying to trap us back there. At least in here we have free range. Come on, let's see if we can't find another doorway to this dream cage."

And with that, The Doctor started down the hill going towards the city beyond. Elsie followed close behind, placing her outdoor sling backpack over her shoulder. The Doctor and Elsie had seen quite a few interesting things since leaving the dream space and then returning to it, but nothing could prepare them for what they would see in the city as they entered through the main gates.

The Doctor soon spoke, suddenly recognizing something familiar about the city, "Wait, I know of this place. This is the Dominion Of Light, a place I read about. It's supposed to be a city in the Void."

"What, this place?"

"Indeed, which means everything and everyone in this city originates from the Void. Something tells me that we are in for a treat."

"How so?"

"Imagine Elsie, seeing things that very few other Time Lords have ever seen. Experiencing things that Time Lords could only dream of experiencing. Wrap your head around that for a moment."

The Doctor was right of course as he and Elsie began walking down what appeared to be the main street, which was flanked on both sides by trees and countless street vendors selling their goods and wares. The whole scene reminded the Doctor of a very large and grand Chinese marketplace, only far more alien. It was a true sensory overload of bright colors and hues, music and sound, tastes and smells, with countless different alien beings and an infinite variety of street food, drink, fresh produce and other items of interest. This place virtually had everything you could possibly ever think of and much, much more.

Elsie soon spoke, in awe of everything around her, "Wow, wow, wowie, wow wow!"

The Doctor continued, impressed by the sight, looking up at the row of brightly colored and brightly lit paper lanterns which were stung up high above him and Elsie, which ran down the center of the main street, "I was right. This place is amazing."

Elsie didn't know what to think or where to start as she ran up to one of the street vendors which was selling musical instruments. The Doctor walked up next to her, noticing a familiar object among the musical instruments, which looked like something crossed between a violin and a harp, which was the size of a violin. The Doctor picked up the musical instrument, holding it like you would a violin and began using his fingers to play it.

The owner of the street vendor, an alien being that looked like something crossed between a cat and a boar, then spoke, "You play well, sir. You must know what the musical instrument is."

The Doctor replied as he kept playing the instrument, playing an old Gallifreyan tune on it, "It's a musical instrument of my home world. I use to own one when I was younger. It's been ages since I've seen one, where did you get it?"

"Where I find all my items, sir. In the Tapestry."

The Doctor stopped playing as he continued, "Ah, yes of course. I know of that place."

"Doctor, what's the Tapestry?" asked Elsie, looking on.

"It's the plug hole at the bottom of the universe, Elsie, where all the time rifts in the universe intersect, bringing with them all manner of items. Everything carried down there by the time rifts ends up there. Time rifts act like waves on the sea. Some things wash up on their shores as other things are carried down to the Tapestry. I should probably take you there sometime. It would be quite interesting."

The Doctor then sat down the musical instrument and started walking away as his eye caught something else at another street vendor, which was selling fresh produce. But Elsie kept glancing at the musical instrument that the Doctor was playing and spoke, speaking just loud enough that only the owner of the musical instrument could hear, "Excuse me but do you care to trade?"

After about a minute or so, Elsie caught up with the Doctor, who was looking at some odd-looking alien fruit. The Doctor spoke as he showed Elsie the fruit, which looked like something crossed between a pear and a raspberry, about the size of a grapefruit, blue in color, "It's called Aejiniafruit, Elsie. Legends say that this fruit cures blindness and extends the lifespan of a human hundredfold. They make a drink out of it here," - The Doctor spotted another item of interest at yet another street vendor as he sat down the fruit and continued, "And look at this, Elsie. Chameleon scarves, which change color according to your mood."

"Doctor," said Elsie, "This is all very interesting, but shouldn't we be focused on..." Suddenly, Elsie's eyes caught something, causing her to forget what she was going to say as she continued, "Hold on, what is that?!"

The Doctor simply grinned and watched as Elsie wandered across the street towards the item of interest. It was as though they had forgotten why they were there in the first place and quickly immersed themselves into the surroundings. The Doctor continued to show Elsie items of interest and explain what they were, educating Elsie on some of the things that life from the Void provided. After a few minutes of this, The Doctor and Elsie found their way to the center of the city, which had a very large round moss-covered stone pool fed by a bubbling hot spring at its heart, surrounded by a gray brick courtyard which had large patches of bright glowing green moss growing on the brick. Elsie soon spoke, "Fancy a swim, Doctor?"

The Doctor smiled. The thought of swimming in a hot spring fed pool was bringing back memories of when he was a little boy going up into the mountains to swim in the hot springs there. The Doctor spoke, "We don't have any bathing suits, Elsie."

Elsie smiled as she opened up her sling backpack and reached inside it. She soon pulled out a bathing suit for her and a shirt and swimming trunks for the Doctor. She then pulled out a couple towels and spoke, "Does this work for you?"

The Doctor nodded. They then quickly found a place to change into their swim wear and both got in the hot spring pool. "Ahhhhhhh," said Elsie, immersing herself deep into the 102 degree water, swimming close by the Doctor. The Doctor on the other hand stayed in the shallow area nearby where the water was bubbling the most and leaned back against the side of the pool, smiling blissfully. The Doctor then spoke, "You know, it's been a long time since I've had a good long soak in a hot spring. I remember when I was little boy on Gallifrey, running up into the mountains to swim in the hot springs there. My whole family would go up there sometimes to swim. Of course that was before..."

The Doctor suddenly began to look sad as he looked away for a moment, staring into space. He then looked back at Elsie and continued, "Do you have any family, Elsie?"

Elsie suddenly looked away for a moment, then looked back and spoke, "Well, I had my parents but I haven't seen them in a long time."

"Any brothers or sisters?"

"Well, my father once told me about an older half-brother I had, who died in the Time War. He died long before I was born. A shame really. I never got the chance to meet him."

The Doctor continued to speak to Elsie about his family as a dream eater scurried across the courtyard, clicking and shrilling loudly. The Doctor then suddenly stopped as a familiar voice from beyond the courtyard spoke, calling out his name, "Doctor! Doctor! You're asleep! Wake up, Doctor! Wake up!"

Suddenly, there was a flash of light and at an instant, the Doctor found himself on the floor of the corridor in his regular clothes, just outside the doorway to the marketplace. The Doctor sat up as Elsie continued, "Doctor, are you alright? Doctor, what happened?"

"I think it is the dream eater spore in our minds, Elsie. It is effecting us in here. Where are the dream eaters?"

"What dream eaters, Doctor? We walked down this corridor alone."

The Doctor looked around a moment then spoke, "The lines of reality and dreams are blurred here, Elsie. We need to find the room where the lines converge and my guess is that room lies near the heart of this hive. We need to be on our guard Elsie, dream eaters are everywhere here, watching us," but then the Doctor noticed a familiar sight up in a corner of the corridor, a camera, aimed right at him and Elsie, "Then again, I might be wrong about that."

Elsie them noticed the camera and spoke, "Doctor, where did that camera come from? I didn't notice that camera there before."

The Doctor looked up at the camera and continued, "I'm beginning to think that whoever or whatever is watching us has been planning all of this out for a while now."

"But who is watching us on the cameras? The dream eaters?"

"I'm beginning to think not."

The Doctor looked up at the camera as Elsie wandered over towards another doorway which showed a familiar scene through it, a vast open field of deep red grass atop a hill with a burnt orange sky above it. Elsie soon spoke, "Doctor, is that what I think it is?"

The Doctor looked over at the doorway and spoke, "No Elsie. That may look like a field of red grass on Gallifrey, but it is not Gallifrey. It is best that don't go through anymore doorways until..."

But Elsie had walked away and was already through the doorway that lead to the field of red grass. The Doctor continued, "Elsie? Elsie! Come back!"

But something was drawing Elsie through the doorway and onto the field of red grass. She began to look around in awe of her surroundings as this was the first time that she had ever experienced anything of her home world. She could see the two moons of Gallifrey in the east part of the skyline, the large ringed ice planet of Polarfrey in the west part of the skyline and Gallifrey's two yellow suns, Kadriana and Pogar, shinning down brightly in the south as she felt a warm, gentle breeze blowing through the tall red grass, with a line of trees nearby.

The Doctor quickly found her again as he entered through the doorway and stood next to her.

"Elsie," said the Doctor, "I know this is all very fascinating to you, but this is not Gallifrey. This is another dream cage made to trap you. We need to get back to the corridor before..."

But Elsie wasn't listening as she ran towards the trees and climbed up one tree to overlook the field. The Doctor soon followed her as Elsie called down to the Doctor, "I see a village nearby. Do you think other Time Lords are there?"

"I don't know, Elsie," said the Doctor, looking up at Elsie in the tree, "But we really need to focus on..."

"Let's go to the village, Doctor!" said Elsie, climbing down the tree and moving to go towards the village.

"Elsie, Elsie, Elsie," said The Doctor, stopping Elsie, "We don't have time for this. We need to get back to the corridor, find the center of the hive and stop whatever is there."

"But what if there are other Time Lords in the village? Perhaps they can help us."

"With what exactly?"

"If it is true that the Time Lords have encountered the dream eaters before, they might know how to remove the dream eater spore from our minds."

"Elsie, we're in the dream space. We still have the dream eater spore in our minds back in the real world."

"Well maybe with the help of the Time Lords here, we can disable it somehow, make it so it doesn't affect us."

Suddenly, a male voice butted in, "Well, the only way to remove the dream eater spore completely is to go back to when you originally acquired it and stop it before it enters your mind."

The Doctor and Elsie turned around and noticed another Time Lord, named Balloc, standing right behind them, who was wearing simple Gallifreyan civilian clothing which included a jumper and a hoodie. The Doctor soon spoke, "And how do you go about doing that?"

Balloc continued, "By finding the moment that brought you into the dream space the first time around of course. Come, we will go to the village and talk to the seer there."

And with that, Balloc walked between the Doctor and Elsie and began walking towards the village. The Doctor and Elsie follow close behind.

As the Doctor and Elsie entered the village a few minutes later, the other people in the village began to swarm around them as Balloc spoke, "We have Time Lords from outside the dream space here. They are in need of assistance."

Elsie was in awe at the sight of the other Time Lords and Time Ladies around her, who were also wearing simple Gallifreyan civilian clothing which included a jumper and a hoodie, as the Doctor spoke, "Well, if you can help us reach the center of the dream eater hive faster that would be most helpful. I'm the Doctor by the way and this is my friend Elsie. Sorry if my friend is a little awestruck, she's an Earth-born Gallifreyan you see and has never really experienced life on Gallifrey before. Though I have told her a couple times already that this isn't Gallifrey proper but she doesn't seem to care so I'm just leaving it well enough alone."

Then an authoritative female voice is soon heard, "Do you not know what lingers at the heart of this dream eater hive, whereas I have seen the truth. It watches you at this very moment through its many eyes, it does not leave no stone unturned, no sight unseen, it knows that you are coming and is preparing."

The Doctor and Elsie look up at a Time Lady in splendorous long flowing robes, walking down a set of stairs towards them. The Time Lady, named Celestia, continues, "Many have tried to stop it, but it always seems to be one step ahead, stopping those who oppose against it in some way or another. What makes you think that you can stop it?"

The Doctor spoke, "Well we have our methods."

"Are those Time Lord robes?" asked Elsie, looking at Celestra's robes.

Celestia continued, standing in front of the Doctor, "My name is Celestia, I am a member of the Sisterhood of Karn, the seers of Gallifrey. And I have been waiting for this encounter with you and your friend for a long time."

"Were you expecting us?" asked the Doctor, mildly confused.

"I predicted your coming many days ago, we have all been waiting for you. You and your friend are the ones who will free us all from this place. Take heed at what I am to tell you. The queen of the dream eaters lies at the heart of this dream eater hive, but she answers to a higher presence, the very presence that made the dream space so many years ago."

"A presence? What presence?" asked Elsie, looking on.

"It is said that it came from the Void, brought into the universe by a member of our kind by accident. It created the dream space soon after and has been trapping many a beings inside it with the help of the dream eaters ever since, feeding off the imaginations and dreams of those trapped inside it. We need you and your friend to stop it if you can. But it will be hard since it has eyes everywhere, watching and waiting. It knows that you are here and will stop at nothing to prevent you from reaching the center of the hive."

"I'd like to see it try," said the Doctor.

Celestia looked up at the sky and continued, "It is very nearly evening now. It is time to rest and enjoy the festivities. We will prepare and supply you for your journey tomorrow. But for now, you and your friend can rest."

"Festivities?" asked the Doctor.

Celestia then raised her arms above her head and clapped, signaling the start of the festivities. Then suddenly, Time Lords began to swarm around the Doctor as Time Ladies began to swarm around Elsie. The Doctor soon noticed that Elsie was being escorted away by the Time Ladies as he was being escorted away by the Time Lords as he spoke, "Hold on, what are you doing? Where are you taking me? Elsie? Elsie!"

Elsie spoke back to the Doctor, "It's alright, Doctor, I think they just want to show us around the village."

The Doctor began to protest a little as he was spirited away, but it soon became apparent that the festivities were in honor of them, him and Elsie. As the afternoon faded into the twilight of early evening, the festivities began to kick off. There were Gallifreyan fireworks, singing, dancing and music. There were Gallifreyan children playing games and tables of food and drink laid out in the center of the village and everyone was enjoying themselves. Some were dancing and playing instruments around a blazing fire, telling song-stories about Gallifrey and some of the legends of Gallifrey. The Doctor was sitting in a chair next to the fire, waiting for Elsie to reappear.

The Doctor had been talking to the other Time Lords and had since picked up some information about who and what the presence at the heart of the dream eater hive was. Elsie soon reappeared, holding a couple plates of food. The Doctor soon spoke, "Elsie, are you alright? What happened to you?"

"I'm fine, Doctor. And nothing happened to me, they showed me around the village and cleaned me up a little.

"Same. Then they placed me in this chair and told me to wait for you here. Where did you get all that?" asked the Doctor, looking at the plates of food in Elsie's hands.

"From the buffet table. Doctor, this place is amazing. Is this what Gallifrey really is like?"

"Normally, Elsie, especially outside of the Citadel. Many beings in the universe don't realize that Time Lords aren't as dusty and boring as the universe makes them out to be. We're actually quite an active and lively lot, both physically and mentally. We play games, have tournaments, play musical instruments, sing, dance, cook and so on. But we especially like gardening and observing the universe. And this is only the tip of the iceberg. Of course, I prefer traveling, experiencing and seeing the universe as some other Time Lords and Time Ladies do."

"Same," said Elsie with a smile. Elsie then handed a plate of food to the Doctor, "Here, this one is yours. I can guess that much of this food is native to Gallifrey."

"It is," said the Doctor, taking the plate from Elsie, "But I hope you realize that we are in the dream space. It is likely that this food is not real."

"Well you don't know that and neither do I. You did say that the lines of reality and dreams were blurred here so you never know," said Elsie as she sat down in the empty chair next to the Doctor as the Doctor continued, trying to get Elsie focused on the problem at hand, "Elsie, listen to me. We need to get back to the corridor as soon as possible and find our way to the heart of the dream eater hive."

"I know that, Doctor, but we don't need to worry about it right now. Let's just relax and enjoy ourselves."

"Listen to me Elsie, the presence at the heart of this dream eater hive is not just feeding on your imagination and dreams, it's also collecting it for something..."

"For some sort of weapon or machine, I know. But why worry about it now?"

"Because if the presence at the heart of this dream eater hive is from the Void, it may be trying to break into the universe."

"But didn't they say that the dream eaters were collecting the imagination and dreams to power some sort of machine which will allow more of their kind to..."

Suddenly, Elsie stopped, suddenly realizing what the Doctor was getting at. She then continued, "Oh, Ohhhh, that's bad, that's very very bad. Doctor, we need to get back to the corridor!"

"Exactly Elsie. Imagine more of their kind invading the universe, trapping and consuming more and more until there is no imagination or dreams left. Finally, you see the urgency of the matter."

"So what are we going to do, Doctor? We certainly can't go now, it's night time."

"Who says we can't go now?"

"Because it is to dangerous," said a familiar voice talking down at them. The Doctor and Elsie looked up and noticed Celestia standing in front of them, this time wearing the same clothes as all the other Time Lords and Time Ladies were wearing.

… **Continued Chapter 4** …


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4** :

"There is a fog that appears and surrounds the village every night. A thick ominous cloud that we know not the origin of. Something lives in the fog, something sinister. Everyone that has gone into the fog has vanished, never to return. This is why you can't leave tonight," said Celestia.

The Doctor continued, "Tell me, how long has this fog been appearing?"

"For as long as we can all remember. No one has ever seen what lurks in the fog, at least not anyone still present and living that is. This is why you must stay in the village tonight, otherwise you will be consumed by the fog."

"But we need to get back to the corridor," said Elsie, "We need to get back to it and stop the dream eaters!"

The Doctor raised a hand, then continued, "I'm afraid in this case, Elsie, Celestia knows best. We will leave in the morning when the fog is gone."

"But you said that..."

"I know what I said, Elsie, but we don't need another mystery on our hands right now. Yes, we need to stop the dream eaters but there's a time and a place," The Doctor gave Elsie a look that told her that he was up to something. Celestia then spoke, "Your sleeping quarters have been prepared. I can escort you to them if you like."

"That would be nice," said Elsie, looking back at Celestia.

"Follow me then," said Celestia and with that, Elsie and the Doctor stood up from there chairs and followed Celestia to the far end of the village, which overlooked vast open grassland of deep red grass. The Doctor soon spoke, "This is reminding me a lot about home. I remember vast open fields and grasslands full of deep red grass, low rolling hills covered with wildflowers and great forests of white leaved trees. It's a shame that this place is merely a part of a complicated dream trap."

Elsie then spoke, "Doctor, is there any chance that you could take me to true and proper Gallifrey? I've so wanted to see the home planet of my people."

"I can't see why not since I know where it is. But I would have to shield my presence there."

"Whatever for?"

"Long story."

"We're here," said Celestia, showing the Doctor and Elsie two sleeping huts. She then suddenly looked over the vast open grassland and spoke, "It's coming,"

"What is?" asked Elsie.

"The fog."

Elsie and the Doctor then began to notice a thick orange-white fog slowly creeping across the grassland, reaching the edge of the village. Celestia then spoke, "It's time for bed for all of us. Good night to you two, I will see you in the morning."

The Doctor gave a single nod as Celestia wandered away back towards the center of the village where the festivities were winding down. Upon seeing the fog, everyone quickly went into there houses and huts. They were obviously scared, or at the very least aware of what lurked in the fog. The Doctor then turned the Elsie and spoke, "I see you still have your sling backpack. Have you got a couple flashlights, torches that is?"

"Doctor, I have everything you could possibly ever need in my sling backpack. It is bigger on the inside afterall."

"I know and quite useful at that. Where did you get such a backpack in the first place?"

"My father gave it to me, who got it from his father, who in turn got it from his father. It is sort of a family heirloom you see. It was supposed to go to my half-brother, but he died."

"I know what kind of backpack it is. Allot of Gallifreyans owned one, even I use to own one when I was little. They are a dime a dozen on Gallifrey but a rare sight away from Gallifrey. Anyway, where are the torches?"

Elsie stuck her hand into her sling backpack and pulled out two torches, "I knew that we were going to do this."

"Did you now?" asked the Doctor as Elsie handed him one of the torches.

"That look you gave me earlier told me that you were going to be up to something. Are we going into the fog then?"

"We have to, we need to get back to the corridor and back out of this dream cage. We'll never reach the center of the dream eater hive if we keep walking into other dream cages and wandering about. Come on, let's go back the way we came and get out of here."

And with that, the Doctor and Elsie began wandering back through the village and back out the entrance to it. They then found themselves face to face with the fog. Elsie grabbed hold of The Doctor's arm and spoke, "Is it just me or do you feel that something is not right here?"

"I know but we need to get back to the corridor, we have no time to waste. Stay close to me Elsie and use your torch."

The Doctor and Elsie then entered the fog, staying alert and aware of there suroundings. They walked for a few minutes through the fog with no incidents. Then suddenly, as they were nearing the doorway to the dream cage they were in, which was invisible, they began to hear growling then the sound of something running towards them.

"What is that, Doctor?!" yelled Elsie as the Doctor brought out his sonic screwdriver and scanned the area in front of him, revealing the doorway.

"We have no time to find out, Elsie! Go through the doorway quickly!"

Elsie quickly ran through the doorway as the Doctor turned and aimed his sonic towards the running beast that was nearly on tip of them. But just as the creature was about to break through the wall of fog, the Doctor jumped through the doorway and back into the corridor. He then hid away his sonic and spoke, "I think it's best that we don't go through anymore..."

Suddenly, a wall of the corridor raised up next to him and Elsie, revealing a group of armed soldiers with there laser guns aimed right at them. The Doctor and Elsie looked on confusingly as a man from the group stepped forward and spoke, "You two need to come with me. You've got some explaining to do."

"About what?"

But no other answers were given as the group of armed soldiers surrounded them and began escorting them down another corridor as a camera in the corner kept watching them. As they walked down this branching corridor, they continued to walk past doorways leading to other dream cages. The Doctor and Elsie were then lead into a large circular room where several experiments were taking place. The Doctor then spoke, "This looks very familiar. It reminds me of the place we're at back in the real world."

"The lines between reality and dreams are blurred here, surely you know that by now," said a familiar voice behind the Doctor and Elsie. The Doctor and Elsie turned around and saw that it was Gynar. The Doctor soon spoke, "Oh hello, it's you again. Where are all the others then? Tergin, Jeris? What about snake lady?"

"Busy looking for you two. Did you really think you were going to get away from us that easily, especially when there are cameras everywhere watching your every move?"

"Listen, me and Elsie don't need your help."

"Maybe not, but we need yours."

"Now what makes us so special?"

"You can help us reach the center of the dream eater hive thanks to the dream eater spore in your minds."

"What's so special about that?"

"You will find out soon enough," said another familiar voice. The Doctor and Elsie turned around again only to see Tergin and Jeris behind them. The Doctor continued, "And there you two are."

"How did you two manage to escape from us and end up in completely different sections of the dream space?"

"Well, I think it has something to do with the dream eater spore, it sent us to our original places in the dream space. We managed to do just fine before running into you lot."

"We need you here though. You are the key that will help us reach the center of the dream eater hive apart from the experiments that we are doing."

"Yes, about these experiments. What are they for?" asked the Doctor, noticing a camera in the corner.

"To test the effects of the dream eater's influence on the mind of course. We use captured dream eaters in our experiments to see how there abilities affect the mind. Our superiors are curious to know how there powers work."

"And who are your superiors? And why are they so curious about the dream eaters?" asked the Doctor, looking into the lens of the camera he noticed and grinning.

"We already explained that to you."

"Yes, I remember, for use in mental warfare against your enemy. I just wanted you to repeat it, just to remind me. Question is, who are your enemies with the telepathic powers?"

"You need not know about them for the time being. All we ask is that you help us reach the center of the dream eater hive. But there is one interesting thing you should know."

"Go on," said the Doctor looking back at Tergin.

"These doorways that lead to other dream cages. Some of the worlds inside the dream cages are living fragments of future events. They aren't just dream traps being used to hold victims of the dream eaters, some of them are records of future events and in a few of these future events, we see you two, which is the curious bit."

The Doctor looked back at the camera again as Elsie spoke, "Well what's so curious about that?"

"The timelines of the future events we see you two in are all connected, all converging at one point in space and time. It is said that it is at this convergence that the fate of the universe will be decided."

"And who told you that?" asked the Doctor.

"Our superiors of course."

"Yes, of course, they who watch all of you through all of these cameras I assume."

Tergin and Jeris looked at one another with puzzled looks on there face before Tergin looked back and spoke, "There are cameras here? But there is only the cameras back in the real world."

"You mean you don't notice them? You don't notice...?" Suddenly, the Doctor looked back at the camera in the corner, suddenly realizing something. Elsie noticed the look on the Doctor's face and spoke, "Doctor, what is it? What's wrong?"

"If their superiors are only watching them through the cameras in the real world, then who is watching them through the cameras in the dream space? There are perception filters around these cameras, just like there are perception filters around the doorways to each dream cage. You're not supposed to know they are there," The Doctor then noticed the Cobardine female watching him and walked up to her. He then continued, "I bet you can see the cameras clearly. The perception of telepaths like us can look through a perception filter."

"Yessssss, I can see them,"

"Why didn't you tell us?" asked Gynar, looking on.

"Sssssssss, I thought they were ssssupposed to be there ssssssss."

Stunned looks fell upon Gynar's, Tergin's and Jeris's faces as the Doctor continued, "I'm afraid that there is no chance at surprising whoever or whatever is watching us through the cameras here. I think it's about time we started on our way to the center of this dream eater hive," The Doctor then looked back at the camera and continued, "Or would whoever or whatever is watching us care to say a few words?"

Suddenly, a female voice began to resonate through the air, loud enough for everyone in the circular room to hear, "Ouuuu, you are clever Time Lord, but you do not realize the full magnitude of the role that you and your companion play in this. You do not realize what you are doing or where you are going. But soon you will know, soon you will see."

"Do tell us who you are," said the Doctor, speaking into the air.

"I am Queen Alithia, queen and ruler of the dream eaters. Welcome to my hive, Time Lords. We remember the last time we were in this universe. We had such a pleasant time."

"Until the Time Lords defeated you and sent you back into the the Void!"

Elsie looked at the Doctor as the Doctor looked at Elsie and continued, "Yeah, didn't know that did you?"

The Doctor went on, "I remember the invasion well. You tried trapping Time Lords inside the dream space by offering them their heart's desires. Sure, it was tempting, but the Time Lords were smart and they knew better so they gathered you all up and sent you back to the Void from which you came. So tell me, how did you manage to get back into this universe this time around?"

"If you are so determined to know, why don't you and your companion come to my chamber?"

Suddenly, an invisible trap door opened in the floor, revealing an entrance to another corridor. Elsie then spoke, looking down at the trap door, "I'd say that is an invitation."

The Doctor walked over to the trap door and looked down into the corridor beyond it. Seeing that the coast was clear, he looked back at Elsie and spoke, "Come along, Elsie."

But just as the Doctor was about to go down through the trap door, Tergin stopped him and spoke, "No, not without the rest of the team."

Tergin then gestured for the team that came into the dream space through the dream machine to assemble, weapons in hand. The Cobardine female stood next to Tergin and spoke, "Ssssssss I ssssense many dream eaterssss in the corridor. They will be watching ussss all the way to the center sssssss."

Tergin spoke to the whole group, "Everyone be on your guard. Dream eaters are likely going to be everywhere in the corridor. Don't let them anywhere near you. And make sure you have your gun lights on while were down there. Let's go."

And with that, Tergin lead the way down the stairs which lead into the corridor under the trap door. The Doctor and Elsie follow close behind the group as the Doctor brought out his sonic screwdriver and began scanning the corridor. The Doctor spoke, speaking towards Tergin, "So, these superiors that you are doing experiments on the dream eaters for, who are they?"

"They are our superiors, that's all you need to know," replied Tergin, keeping his laser riffle out in front of him.

"What about your enemies? Who are they exactly?" asked the Doctor.

Gynar soon spoke, "They don't have an actual name, but we simply call them the Darkness. They are an alien race of telepathic beings with no physical bodies, native to the Void. They live as a single entity, as a collective hive mind, a collective energy. Individuals will sometimes act as scouts, spying on us. They are universe eaters, acting like locusts going from one universe to the next, feeding and consuming every universe they encounter. And now, they have their eyes on our universe."

"Yes, that's quite enough information shared for the time being, thank you," said Tergin.

Suddenly, they caught sight of a dream eater latched onto the right side wall of the corridor, clicking and shrilling loudly. Then another dream eater scurried across the corridor floor, going through a doorway. The Doctor looked through the doorway and noticed the scene of a drawing room with a lit fire in the fireplace. He then noticed a trail of scorch marks on the wooden floor, as though something burning had been dragged across the floor, leading up a staircase and into a bedroom.

Elsie was about to go through the doorway when the Doctor grabbed her by the arm and spoke, "We have no time to investigate, Elsie. Some other time and place."

Elsie then looked through another doorway onto a scene of what appeared to be a large, dark, murky lake. She then noticed someone, a pale human-like figure, walking out of the lake and onto the stone covered beach, with patches of blue-green seaweed draped over its shoulders and head. The human-like figure, which was a woman, then opened her mouth wide as a cloud of blue vapor surrounded her. The woman screams, causing Elsie to jump back and away from the doorway.

"Elsie!" called the Doctor, who was now several feet away from her. Elsie quickly caught up with the Doctor as they continued following Tergin and the others. After a few minutes of walking, they soon entered another large circular chamber which was lit with blue bioluminescent light. The ceiling of the chamber was covered with bioluminescent teardrop shaped orbs which had long black cables attached to them. The Doctor suddenly stopped and spoke as the others entered and looked around, with a look of concern on his face, "Oh no,"

Elsie soon spoke, noticing the look on the Doctor's face, "Doctor? Doctor, what is it?"

"This is the Architectural Reconfiguration System of a TARDIS."

"What?"

"The ceiling, Elsie, it's covered by an Architectural Reconfiguration System. The dream eaters built this hive from it using its abilities. And if this is the Architectural Reconfiguration System of a TARDIS, that means..."

"What, Doctor?"

"There is a TARDIS here in this hive somewhere."

"Correct, Time Lord!" said a familiar authorative voice in front of the group. Everyone in the group quickly looked forward and aimed their laser riffles at the source of the voice. It was Queen Alithia, who appeared as an alien being with the upper body of a humanoid but the lower body of an octopus. She sat on a throne made of long black cables which were connected to the Architectural Reconfiguration System above. She had her tentacles wrapped around the base of her throne as though she was concealing something underneath it.

"So, we meet at last," said the Doctor, looking up at Queen Alithia, "You don't look like the others. Well, that shouldn't be surprising since your kind our an alien race of shape changers. So tell us, why are you and your kind here? When your kind invaded the last time, The Time Lords stopped you and sent you back into the Void, never to return. How can you even be in the universe now?"

"We aren't, Time Lord."

"Explain,"

"The Dream Space does not lie inside of your universe, it lies outside it, in a dimension between your universe and the Void. The dimension was built for the intent and purpose of housing and storing thousands of people for the collection. My hive sits at the very heart of the Dream Space, watching, ever observing the great work of my children as they feed and collect the energy needed."

"Needed for what?"

"For the machine of course. A machine that will punch a hole into your universe, thus allowing more of our kind to enter your universe once more."

"Not while I'm here. I will stop you," said The Doctor.

"No one and nothing can stop us! We will have our prize! Then our superiors will enter your universe and consume it from the inside out!" said Queen Alithia as she giggled a sinister giggle.

Tergin then spoke, stunned by what he had heard, "No, you don't mean that…? Doctor, she is talking about the Darkness. The dream eaters are working for the Darkness! We were right, we were right all along!"

"Correct. They gave us the ability and the means to collect people in order to harvest the energy needed to power the machine that will allow The Darkness to enter your universe. Fires will rage, planets will be consumed, whole galaxies will fall. This is the end of your universe, Time Lord."

"Stop this! Stop this now! Go back to the Void where you belong and leave this universe alone, leave it in peace!"

"Never, Time Lord! We will have our prize and the Darkness will have its feast."

"What prize, your majesty? What has the Darkness offered your people to make you want to destroy the universe?"

"We get the universe's people. All of its people. We will consume them all."

Suddenly, dream eaters began to swarm around the group, about to attack. The Doctor then continued, "You really should think about what you and your children are doing, your majesty. You don't have any idea what I am capable of!"

"But we do, Time Lord! We know all about your people, their strengths and their weaknesses. You forget, we invaded Gallifrey long ago, studied your kind. Nothing you can do will stop us from fulfilling the mission given to us by The Darkness."

The Doctor continued on, "Do you want to start a war, your majesty? Because that's what will happen if you go through with this plan. The universe will not give in as easily as you might think and neither will the Time Lords. Their are races in my universe, many races that will not allow themselves to be consumed by anyone or anything. They will fight back and so will I! I will not allow you or any other species for that matter invade or consume any part of my universe."

"You do not understand, Time Lord. A couple dozen universes have been consumed by the Darkness in the past, your universe will be no different," said Queen Alithia as the dream eaters began to get closer to the group, surrounding them.

"Let me guess, they offered you the people in all those other universes so you helped the Darkness enter those universes through use of your machine, am I right?"

"Correct, Time Lord and now it is time for you to be consumed as well. Attack them my children!"

But just as the dream eaters were about to attack the group, a bright light suddenly surrounded the group, stopping the dream eaters in their tracks. The group was then suddenly teleported away and out of danger. A moment or two later, the group found themselves in another large circular room bathed in bright white light. Then a gentle male voice spoke as a group of alien beings, which had bodies made entirely of light, appeared through the light, "Welcome to the Temple of Light, travelers. Do not be alarmed by what you see, hear or feel here, we are merely here to help you."

"Doctor, where are we? What happened?" asked Elsie, looking around as the others in the group looked around. The Cobardine female suddenly came up to the front of the group and bowed her head before the beings that greeted them before the Doctor spoke, "I think, Elsie, we might be in the presence of Tergin's superiors."

"You are correct, Doctor."

The Doctor looked up at the beings and continued, "You know me?"

"We have been following you and your companion ever since you and her first entered the Dream Space some time ago."

"How long ago?" asked Elsie.

"Two weeks ago. You and The Doctor have been experiencing things and sharing dreams ever since."

Tergin spoke, his laser riffle aimed at the light beings, "That's impossible, we would have remembered if we were in the Dream Space for that long."

"You have all forgotten for that is what the dream eater's influence does, it makes you forget. The dream eaters have long since invaded your universe because of Tergin and his people."

"But why? Why would you want them to bring such horrible creatures into this universe?" asked Elsie, looking on.

"We were desperate in those early days when we first battled with our enemies. The dream eaters were once allied to us, offering to share their powers with us in order to fight our enemies."

"Then I supposed something happened to change that."

"Yes, Doctor. But you need to understand who our enemies are. Long ago, we had physical bodies of our own. We were the most civilized, technologically advanced and powerful alien race in our universe. But in our arrogance and hunger for power, we strived for greater, more dangerous ambitions. We developed the means to travel to other universes and dimensions and in time we became overambitious and overconfident in our power and technology.

Eventually we lost our physical bodies. But we soon discovered that this wasn't the worst to happen. You see us now, beings of goodness and light who have long since seen the error of their ways. But we are only half of what we once were. When our new bodies split into two, we became two different races. Both races were born in the Void, one of goodness and light, the other of pure darkness. One race seeks to protect and preserve the universe while the other race seeks to destroy and consume it."

A look of surprise fell upon the Doctor's face as Elsie spoke, "What is it, Doctor?"

The Doctor then walked closer to the beings of light and spoke, "The Darkness, Elsie. They are not just another alien race who are their enemies, they are the other half of this race."

"What, you mean like these beings of light are the Mystics and The Darkness are the Skeksis? You know, like in _The Dark Crystal_ but different?"

" _The Dark Crystal_?"

"It's an old 80s children's movie from Earth. It's about this all powerful crystal that got..."

"Now is not the time for an explanation, Elsie."

The Doctor then turned to the beings of light and continued, "I suppose you want our help with something, yes?"

"Yes. We need you to stop the dream eaters and their plan. You must find the machine and destroy it before they can use it."

"How?" asked the Doctor.

"We know where the machine is. It's being hidden in a very special place deep within the dream eater hive. But only you and your companion shall be going there."

Suddenly, Tergin began to protest. But then the being of light continued, "You Tergin and your people were not supposed to continue the experiments after the 5th battle at Gylisium. Did you really think that we would not find out?"

"What are you talking about?" asked Gynar as the rest of the group looked on.

"You and your people are after the power source of the machine aren't you?"

Suddenly, the members of the group looked at one another stunned as Jeris spoke, "How do you know about that?"

"We have ears Jeris as well as eyes. Your people planned on using the power source of the machine once the dream eaters were out of the way."

"Hold on, what is all this about?" asked the Doctor, looking at Jeris then back at the light beings.

"That is why they are so keen to go with you, Doctor. They wish to obtain and use the energy collected for the machine so that they can make an energy bomb."

"What for?"

The light being continued, "To destroy my people of course. You realize Doctor that apart from my people, your companion and the Cobardine female, you are surrounded by beings with sinister intent. So tell us Tergin, when did you and your people switch sides to our enemies?"

Tergin spoke, "You do not understand! It was either you or us! I'm sorry, but we are doing this in order to save our people! The experiments, all of it. Even your kind can understand the feeling of desperation."

"We do understand Tergin, but it is not your place to decide our fate, but mine. I am the leader of my people, Tergin and I will protect them to the ends of this universe and the next."

"You can not stop the Darkness! Once that machine is turned on, they will enter your universe. You can not stop them from consuming it!"

"The Time Lords will stop them just as they stopped the dream eaters and the Darkness before."

The Doctor looked at the light being as Elsie spoke, "You mean The Darkness tried to invade before?"

"Yes, with the help of the dream eaters. We thought that they had learned the error of their ways which is why we allied to them in the next attempt. But as you can see, it did not turn out that way."

The light being then turned to Tergin and continued, "As for you and your people, Tergin, we of the Temple of Light are not without mercy. We will not execute you or your people, but you are hereby ordered to discontinue the experiments, free all captive dream eaters and return to the Void from which you came. If you do not do as ordered, we will force you to do so. Realize that we are not as weak as you make us out to be."

Suddenly, Tergin fired his laser riffle at the light being. But in the blink of an eye, the Cobardine female turned with a hiss and jumped in front of the shot, getting struck by it. Then with a wave of the light being's hand, Tergin, Gynar, Jeris and the rest of their people vanished, having been sent back to where they came from. The light being then quickly spoke as the Doctor caught the Cobardine female before she could fall, "Doctor, you must return to the real world now, all of you! Get out of the complex as quickly as you can! Good luck."

"But wait, what about...?"

With a wave of the light being's hand, the Doctor, Elsie and the Cobardine female vanish, being sent back to the real world. Seconds later, the Doctor, Elsie and the Cobardine female wake up back in the real world, still attached to the dream machine. The Doctor, Elsie and the Cobardine female quickly got out of their chairs as a male voice was heard in the air, "Get out! Get out of there now!"

"Come on, Doctor!" said Elsie as she grabbed the Doctor's hand and he grabbed the Cobardine female's hand. Soon, all three of them were running towards the main doors, going past Tergin's people, who were confused and wondering why they were running. Suddenly, the familiar voice of Tergin called out from behind them just as they were reaching the main doors, "Stop them! Stop them, they know! Stop them!"

But the Doctor, Elsie and the Cobardine female escaped just in time and quickly ran back to the TARDIS. The Doctor quickly unlocked the TARDIS doors and ran inside, followed by Elsie and the Cobardine female. Elsie soon spoke, "Doctor, we need to get out of here!"

"Working on it, Elsie."

The Cobardine female stayed near the TARDIS doors as she spoke, "Ssssss they are coming! They will kill ussss if they capture usssss!"

"Here we go!" said the Doctor as he pressed in co-ordinates and then pulled down the lever, causing the TARDIS to dematerialize right when Tergin and the others were just about to reach them. They fired their laser riffles at the TARDIS, which had no effect. The TARDIS was soon on its way to a new destination.

... **Continued Chapter 5**...


End file.
